Assistant Girlswear Designer - Woven Bottoms - 12 Month Fixed Term Contract in Leicester

Working Pattern: Typically 5 days in the office, with core hours flexible between 8am-6pm.

The Role: As our new Assistant Designer for Girls Woven Bottoms, you’ll be the creative force behind the skirts, trousers, and shorts that define a girl’s wardrobe. From perfecting the fit of an everyday chino to capturing the magic of a tulle party skirt, you’ll help turn global trends into commercial hits. Your role makes a tangible difference by ensuring our woven collections are both stylish and practical for our young customers. Our Designers here at Next are always looking forward, focusing on trend and pushing the boundaries of what we can offer our fantastic customer base. You will work as a key part of the critical path, creating new and innovative designs across Girlswear Woven Bottoms.

What You’ll Take On:

• Support the Design Vision: Assist in identifying key trends in fabrics (from denim to linen), colors, and silhouettes specifically for the girlswear woven market.
• Design with Agility: Create 'store-ready' sketches that balance high-street speed with the high-quality Next aesthetic.
• Technical CAD Production: Spend your day-to-day creating detailed 2D CADs and technical packs, ensuring all pocket details, fastenings, and trim specifications are accurate for global suppliers.
• Collaborate for Quality: Work hand-in-hand with Buying, Merch & Tech teams to ensure designs are commercially viable, durable enough for active kids, and hit the required price points.
• Inspirational & Development Travel: Join the team on inspirational trend trips to key global fashion hubs to scout the latest street style and retail innovations. You’ll also undertake factory visits to work directly with our suppliers, gaining hands-on experience with the production process and ensuring our woven designs are realised to the highest standard.
• Sample Management: Take ownership of the sampling process, reviewing prototypes for aesthetics and fit, ensuring the woven range remains a consistent favourite for the Next shopper.

What You’ll Bring:

• A Passion for Product: You have a genuine love for garment construction and a sharp eye for detail, from selecting the right weight of denim to choosing the perfect button.
• Creative Agility: You’re a natural at spotting youth trends and can quickly translate a 'big idea' into a wearable woven design that fits the fun, modern Next look.
• The Ability to Juggle: You’re highly organised and stay calm during peak seasonal periods, comfortably managing multiple deadlines across different woven categories.
• A Collaborative Spirit: You’re a team player who communicates clearly and enjoys working alongside cross-functional teams to solve design challenges.
• Technical Foundations: You bring relevant design experience (or a specialist degree) and are highly proficient in Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop.

Portfolios: To help us get a feel for your style, please attach a digital portfolio. We’re looking for work that demonstrates a sharp eye for the future of Girls Woven Bottoms, how these can be commercially viable for Next, and a showcase of your technical CAD skills. Applications without a portfolio will not be considered.

Sponsorship: Candidates wishing to apply who would require sponsorship for this role will be required to meet the Home Office sponsorship requirements. For further information please see: https://www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa.

We encourage early applications for our roles, as our recruitment process begins as soon as the role is advertised. If we successfully fill the position, this advert may close earlier than planned.